Mamavation Monday: Paleo 101

It’s the end of summer and many of us are finishing back to school shopping. The store sales are amazing and I just want to stock up on crayons and markers just because they look so cute (and very cheap). With kids going back to school, some of us will have extra time to do things around the house and maybe learn few things too. Think of Mamavation as your virtual college – we have our own study hall with all kinds of healthy subjects waiting for you.

Mamavation Moms bootcamp is still taking applications – you have until Tuesday, August 14 to submit your video. More details here.

Fitcation 12 is here, and I am really excited! This weekend will be part bootcamp and part FUN FUN FUN! The excitement can already be seen in the group. Those of you not going are not out of luck: we have the most amazing sponsors and they love our community. Give some love to Dole Foods; they have been so generous and we would like to return the favor. Talk to @DoleFoods daily (use #welovedole), and you will be entered to win $250 in VISA gift cards (more details). Also, keep an eye on @LeadingLadyBras #fitcation12 tweets over the weekend. Leading Lady is a bra company specializing in A to H cups, and we will be checking our “girls” throughout the day on Saturday and tweeting about the fit (WOW!). @Subwayfreshbuzz, @SiptheGoodlife and so many more are supporting us. This means more giveaway swags for the whole Mamavation community, not just those attending Fitcation 12.

This Monday we will be talking about the Paleo Diet. How much do you know about Paleo? Is it a diet or a lifestyle? Some of our Mamavation sistas have been doing very well following Paleo way of eating, so we decided to bring in an expert to explain to the community what Paleo is and what it isn’t.

Special Guest: Neely Quinn, the author of “Complete Idiot’s Guide to Eating Paleo”

Neely Quinn is a Certified Integrative Clinical Nutrition Therapist in Boulder, Colorado. She has been seeing clients since about 2005, mostly for chronic conditions like fatigue, gastrointestinal disorders, skin issues like eczema and acne, hormonal imbalances and headaches.

Over the years, it’s become more and more apparent to Neely that people are best-equipped to eat the diet our hunter-gatherer ancestors ate: meat, veggies, fruits, nuts, seeds and eggs. It’s the way we evolved to eat for over 2 million years, until we started growing grains and milking cows. Neely understands that this way of eating is not for everyone. When she is not seeing patients, Neely writes for www.paleoplan.com, which is a meal-planning service for people who are trying to eat the evolutionary way, or the Paleo diet. Check the site out if you’re interested in learning more.

My story is that I’ve always wanted to be in the helping profession. From the time I was 10 years old, I wanted to be a psychotherapist. That was the plan until I was 23 years old and felt really, really awful. With newly developed asthma, chronic bronchitis, horrible digestive issues, skin problems, weight fluctuations, endometriosis, depression and anxiety, muscle and joint pain, and finally partial blindness in one eye, I was a mess. I sought help from medical practitioners, chiropractors, ophthalmologists, neurologists, craniosacral therapists, and acupuncturists, among others. While most of those practitioners had their merits and functions (and some not so much), it ended up that I found the most relief by changing my diet and taking supplements with the help of a nutritionist. I was absolutely compelled to become a nutrition practitioner myself.

MAMAVATION TV: Join us Monday night at 7pm PST/10pm EST on Mingle Media TVBLOGGING CARNIVAL: This week’s blogging carnival is sponsored by GoVida Foods. This snack company was founded by two moms looking to spice up snack time for their families. Healthy conscious fruit lovers, they were tired of plain fruits and were looking for something different. GoVida fruits are especially selected for its flavor and ripeness. Unlike dehydrated fruit, freeze dried fruit has calorie values equal to its fresh counterparts. In some fruits, like strawberries, antioxidant capacity is enhanced after freeze-drying, providing you with fruits higher in antioxidants.

2 blogging carnival participants will receive GoVida Foods baskets. Include the following disclaimer in your weekly Mamavation blog post and link back to sponsor and Mamavation sites to qualify for the prize drawing:

“This post is sponsored by GoVida Foods and hosted by Mamavation – a community dedicated to obesity prevention & weight loss for women and I’m writing this to be entered into a giveaway.”

Link up your post here.

SISTAHOOD: If you are interested in pledging to the Mamavation Sistahood, Monday is the time to do it. Please go here for instructions. Invitations are done on Wednesdays over twitter. (Or later if I get swamped)

GIVEAWAYS (You must attend Mamavation TV show to win):

GoVida Fruit Baskets (2 winners)

To Enter (leave a comment for entry):

Hit the Linky
Tweet out this message “Giveaways LIVE on #Mamavation TV. This week sponsored by @GoVidaFoods. Join us for chat w Neely Quinn about Paleo Diet http://bit.ly/TrP0r5 (Unlimited Entries for tweets)

Extra Entries (leave a comment for EVERY entry):
Download the Alexa tool bar, http://www.alexa.com/toolbar (this will help your Alexa rating go up and will help Mamavation too!) (1 entry)

Comment on a Mamavation Monday post. (2 entries for each blog you visit)
Tell a Sista this week WHY she is special on twitter using the #mamavation hashtag (1 entry)
Subscribe to the RSS feed of this blog (1 entry)
Follow @InspiredRD on Twitter (1 entry)
Follow @GoVidaFoods on Twitter (1 entry)
Give @Bookieboo Klout points, +Klout in Fitness, nutrition, health, social media, or parenting. (1 entry each)